1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to food heating devices. More particularly the present invention relates to devices having a heating element for heating a contact plate that contacts food during heating, for example, a sandwich toaster or a contact grill.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Food heating devices with heating elements and contact plates are known in the prior art. Such devices often suffer from the problem that the parts of the device contacting the food, i.e. the contact plates, need to be cleaned but this is awkward when the plates are permanently fixed in place. Furthermore, such plates cannot be cleaned in an automatic dishwasher, such machines are becoming increasingly common in the home.
A further problem associated with fixed contact plate food heaters is their lack of versatility. Contact plate food heating devices can be used for heating different foods, the contact plates suitable for one food may be different to those suitable for another. Thus a food heating device with detachable plates has the added advantage that the plates can be interchanged with others having a different form, thereby allowing the device to be used to heat different foods.
Food heating devices with detachable plates are known in the prior art. One such device comprises contact plates arranged at a distance from the heating elements with and air gap therebetweeen. This results in poor thermal transfer between the heating elements and the contact grill. Such a device has the disadvantages of being inefficient and taking a long time to warm up.
European Published Patent Application EP-A-0,646,344 discloses a sandwich toaster wherein the two hingedly connected parts are separable, and when separated, each may be placed in a dishwasher for cleaning. This device has the disadvantage that it is not just the contact plates that are detached but the contact plates connected to the heating elements, which is an expensive arrangement as each plate needs a releasable electrical connection. It has the further disadvantage that the heating elements may be degraded by repeated washings.
British Patent GB-A-1,575,264 discloses a device in which the heating elements are embedded within a full-width flat plate upon which the contact surfaces then sit.